Foreign Mercenaries, Military Equipment Should Leave Ukraine Under OSCE Control – Minsk Deal

According to the Minsk deal, all foreign armed groups, military equipment and mercenaries should leave Ukraine under the OSCE control. Moreover, the document calls for disarming all illegal groups in Ukraine.

Heavy artillery withdrawal in Donbas is set to start soon and will be completed within 14 days, the Minsk document reads.

According to the deal, all foreign armed groups, military equipment and mercenaries should leave Ukraine under the OSCE control.

Moreover, the Minsk document calls for disarming all illegal groups in Ukraine.

Constitutional reform in Ukraine must be completed by the end of 2015, the document reads. Decentralization issue should be reconsidered as well.

The Minsk deal calls for legislation on the special status of the southeastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk. Ukrainian parliament, Verkhovna Rada, must pass a bill on the special status of Donbas within 30 days, the document reads.

Germany and France will give technical support to renew the banking system that was disrupted by violence in eastern Ukraine, according to the Minsk agreement agreed upon by the leaders of Germany, France, Ukraine, and Russia on Thursday.

“Germany and France will provide technical support to renew the segment of the banking system that was disrupted in the regions of the conflict, possibly by creating an international mechanism to provide social payments,” according to the Minsk document accepted by the leaders of France, Germany, Ukraine, and Russia.

Kiev will renew the banking systems in the eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, according to the document.

“Ukraine will renew the management of the segment of its banking system in the regions affected by the conflict, and it is possible an international mechanism will be created for money transfers,” the document reads.

“All-for-all” prisoner exchange between Kiev and eastern Ukrainian forces should take place within five days following troops’ pull back.

“Provide for the freedom and exchange of all prisoners and illegally detained individuals on the principle of ‘all-for-all.’ This process must be completed within at least five days after troops have been pulled back,” the document reads.

The document calls for amnesty for the people related to the events in several districts of Donetsk and Luhansk.

Participants of the Normandy format meeting — Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel – have been holding talks for more than 13 hours in the Belarusian capital of Minsk to hammer out a deal on the Ukrainian crisis.

Members of the Contact Group, comprising envoys from Kiev, Moscow, the Luhansk and Donetsk people’s republics, as well as the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) have also been negotiating in Minsk since Tuesday.

Ceasefire in Ukraine to Begin Midnight February 15

Russian President Vladimir Putin told reporters that parties of Normandy quartet have reached an agreement on ceasefire in Ukraine starting midnight Februaty 15.

A ceasefire in eastern Ukraine will come into effect at 12 a.m. local time on February 15 (22:00 February 14 GMT time), Russian President Vladimir Putin said Thursday after the Normandy four meeting on Ukrainian reconciliation in Minsk.

“This was not the best night of my life. But the morning was good regardless of all the difficulties during the negotiations and we were able to agree on the important thing. The first thing we agreed on is the ceasefire starting from 12 a.m. [local time] on February 15. The second point, which I consider extremely important — is the withdrawal of heavy artillery from the today’s contact line for Ukrainian army, and from the line marked on September 19 last year in the Minsk agreements for Donbas,,” Putin told journalists in the Belarusian capital of Minsk following the peace talks on Ukraine.

Kiev refuses to negotiate with the self-proclaimed republics of Donetsk and Luhansk, Russian President Vladimir Putin said adding that the parties have not agreed on the document on the Ukraine reconciliation yet.

“Why did the talks last so long? I think this, unfortunately, is because the Kiev authorities rejected direct contacts with the representatives from the Donetsk and Luhansk People’s republics,” Putin said.

Following the Normandy format talks on Ukraine, the document containing practical measures aimed at implementing the Minsk agreements was signed by the Contact Group, Russian President Vladimir Putin said.”One document was signed just now. The document was signed by the Contact Group, it is called ‘The package of measures aimed at implementing the Minsk agreements’… The second document is not for signatures — this is a statement of French, Ukrainian presidents, your faithful servant, and German Chancellor saying that we support this process,” Putin said.

Russian president also said that Kiev needs Constitutional reform that covers the rights of people living in east Ukraine.

“There are several conditions and positions in the political settlement. The first is a constitutional reform that takes into considerations the legal rights of people living in Donbas,” Putin said after the Minsk talks on Ukrainian reconciliation.

Earlier today Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko said that so far there is “no good news” coming from the reconciliation talks on the Ukrainian crisis in Minsk, but there is some hope, Agence France-Presse reported Thursday.“Unfortunately there isn’t any good news. So far no news, but there is hope,” Poroshenko said, citing several “unacceptable conditions” set forth from the Russian side.

Participants of the Normandy format meeting — Russian President Vladimir Putin, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko, French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel – have been in talks for more than 13 hours in the Belarusian capital Minsk to hammer out a deal on the Ukrainian crisis.

Members of the Contact Group, comprising envoys from Kiev, Moscow, the Luhansk and Donetsk people’s republics, as well as the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) have also been holding talks in Minsk since Tuesday.